Imphal: In a major breakthrough, security forces in Manipur have seized a large cache of sophisticated weapons and ammunition, during raids in the outskirts of five valley districts, on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday.
These weapons are suspected to be among those looted from various police armouries during the ethnic strife between the Valley-based Meiteis and Kuki-Zo community from the Hill districts that began in the state on March 3, 2023. Nearly 250 people have died in the violence till now and thousands have been rendered homeless.
The total number of guns recovered is 328. Among the weapons seized are six AK-series rifles, 151 Self Loading Rifles (SLRs) and 65 Insas rifles. Two MP5 sub-machine guns and 12 Light Machine Guns (LMGs) were among the weapons seized. Over 5,000 rounds of assorted ammunition were also recovered during the raids. Of these, 2,252 were .303 rounds.
“The raids were conducted by the Manipur Police in coordination with Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), Army and Assam Rifles personnel. These weapons and ammunition were stashed away at various locations in the Valley districts. Simultaneous search operations were launched at these locations, based on intelligence inputs,” a Manipur Police official said.
Security forces in Manipur are making an all-out effort to seize unauthorised weapons from both the Meitei and the Kuki-Zo communities. An estimated 6,000 weapons were looted from police armouries. While some of them have been surrendered, a few have been recovered during raids so far.
“We want to account for every weapon that was looted. Our aim is to rid the state of unauthorised weapons, whether sophisticated or locally manufactured. That is the only way to bring about peace. Once people have been unarmed, they will not go out to fight with their bare hands,” the official said.
The police have asked the public to cooperate with police and security forces and report any suspicious activities or information related to illegal weapons to the nearest police station or Central Control Room.
“There is close coordination with all security stakeholders to ensure that such operations continue in a sustained and focused manner to restore normalcy, maintain public order, and ensure the safety and security of citizens and their properties,” the official added.
